Sure, family ties are prevalent in Sprint Cup circles. But reaching the NASCAR upper echelon did not necessarily come because of sibling or fatherly help in the Earnhardt, Petty, Waltrip, Allison, Elliott, Jarrett, Woods, Busch or even the France clans.

James Bickford, who turned 16 last Sunday, is not dropping the name Jeff Gordon any time soon this season. Gordon is the four-time NASCAR champion’s cousin.

“He helps me a bunch,” Bickford said. “But I kind of do my own thing. I have to do what I have to do to get where I’m at.”

The sophomore at Justin-Siena High School in Napa is only a few steps from joining his cousin atop NASCAR’s elite. Bickford will be making his second career start in the K&N Pro West series on Saturday night in the NAPA Auto Parts 150 on Irwindale Speedway’s half-mile oval.

“When he comes to Sonoma (for the late June Cup race) he teaches me things,” Bickford said of Gordon. “I tell him what’s been happening with the season and he tells me how to correct it. It is a lot of help and it’s fun to hang out in his hauler. He couldn’t be more generous.”

James’ father, Tom, is John Bickford’s brother. Gordon, 42, was reared by stepfather John Bickford from the time he was a Vallejo toddler.

“It inspired him for sure,” Tom Bickford said of the relationship between his son and Gordon. “He wanted to be a race car driver when he was 3 because of Jeff. When he turned 5, on his birthday he said, ‘Where’s the quarter midget you promised me?’ He was in my ear.”

James Bickford may only still have a driver’s license permit, but he has about 200 victories and has won several series championships racing quarter midget, Bandoleros, Legends and Late Models. He won the All American Speedway Late Model series title last season, winning six races in the series and then won the season-ending Fall Classic.

Bob Bruncati, who mentors young drivers, plucked Bickford from the Roseville track and put him in the same seat that Derek Thorn used to win the West series title last season.

“He’s a very talented driver,” Bruncati said. “This series is a little harder but I think he will have the ability to do well after getting through his rookie year.”

Bickford finished 25th in his West debut at Phoenix last month, hitting the Turn 3 and 4 walls on the 34th lap.

“(Gordon) signed a hat for me and I signed a driver’s card and gave it right back to him,” Bickford recalled. “He didn’t warn me about Phoenix. I was driving it like a short track.”

The half-mile track at Irwindale for Saturday’s race might suit Bickford just fine. He ran an 18.41-second time in his first time in the car in his first trip to Irwindale in a December practice session, one of the faster times for the cars at the track. He has tested at Irwindale three times.

“They have a lot more horsepower and a lot more grip,” he said. “The weight is a lot different. Going into the corner you have to brake a lot more than you normally have to brake.

“It is definitely an experience racing with these people. All the drivers in this series have money and talent. In Late Models there is a little bit of money and a little bit of talent. I’ve finally gotten to a stage of racing where people have the money and the talent and when that comes together, it’s really difficult and it’s going to be tough to race with these guys.”

That means facing drivers such as Greg Pursley, who used a NASCAR national short-track title at Irwindale to make the move to the West series. Pursley, 46, won the last West race at Irwindale in 2011. He also won the series title that season.

“We have a lot of young rookies coming up in the series,” Pursley said. “That’s the way this series has been going. Its a stepping stone and they allow 15-year-old kids to run now. It’s definitely a challenge for drivers who have been in the series for awhile. But this is what it is here for and they’re here to learn. Unfortunately sometimes we have to pay the price for it.”

Bickford cannot get his driver’s license until July because he just recently earned his permit.

“We tell him he has a long racing career ahead of him,” Tom Bickford said. “He doesn’t need to get there overnight. He feels the pressure all these young kids feel. Everybody‘s taking these kids at a younger age and moving up the ladder faster and faster.

“When he jumped in a Late Model, I thought, ‘OK, this is going to humble him a little bit’ and he won seven races last year. The K&N, I figure this will humble him. But he has a very powerful drive and wants to win. It will take him a little bit of time to get his feet wet because he’s racing with very experienced and talented drivers, so he’ll have his hands full trying to keep up with these guys.”

And the best advice his famous cousin has given him?

“He said you must finish to finish first,” James Bickford recalls of what Gordon told him seven years ago. “That is the best one he gave to me.”

Also racing on the track’s opening night will be the Irwindale Race Trucks and Super Stocks. Qualifying is scheduled for 4:45 p.m. with the first green flag scheduled for 7 p.m.

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